Species 6 (1 in the flora): alpine, arctic, and circumpolar, n North America, s South America, n Europe, e Asia.

The five other species of Koenigia are endemic to high mountains of southeastern Asia, primarily the Himalayas (O. Hedberg 1997). K. Haraldson (1978) and L.-P. Ronse Decraene and J. R. Akeroyd (1988) placed Koenigia close to Aconogonon based on morphological data. Preliminary molecular data seem to support that relationship (A. S. Lamb Frye and K. A. Kron 2003).